Catnip

Objectives The objective of this study was to determine kitten preferences towards different scratchers and the effects of catnip and cat odor on kitten scratching behaviors. Methods Two-choice preference tests were conducted to compare scratchers and preferred scratchers with or without additives (ie, catnip, catnip oil, cat hair) in six studies. Kittens (n = 40, <8 weeks old) had access to two scratchers on the floor of a simulated living room for 20 mins and interactions were video-recorded. The time each kitten spent scratching each scratcher was compared...

Schizonepeta tenuifolia Briquet, commonly known as Japanese catnip, is used for the treatment of colds, headaches, fevers, and skin rashes in traditional Asian medicine (China, Japan and Korea). The volatile oil and its constituents have various demonstrated biological activities, but there is currently limited information regarding the site of biosynthesis. Light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy indicated the presence of three distinct glandular trichome types which, based on their morphological features, are referred to as peltate, capitate and digitiform glandular trichomes...

Environmental enrichment is a well-known technique, which has been used to enhance the welfare of captive animals. The aim of this study is to investigate how three different forms of intrinsic enrichment, namely, a hay ball without scent, a hay ball with catnip, and a hay ball with cinnamon, influenced the behavior of six cheetah and two Sumatran tigers at Fota Wildlife Park, Ireland. Enrichment-directed behaviors, as well as pacing, locomotion, inactive, and exploratory behaviors were investigated. The results indicated that the three forms of enrichment had similar effects, in terms of enrichment-directed behavior, with cinnamon resulting in the highest levels of enrichment-directed behaviors...

Catnip (Nepeta cataria) is a popular plant among cat owners because in about 60% of felids elicits active behaviors such as rolling over, grooming, motor activity and vocalizations. Herein, we assessed the display of active but also passive responses, such as time in sphinx-like position, and consequently hypothesized that 100% of cats respond to catnip. Accordingly, sixty domestic cats of different age (infant, juvenile, adults), sex (males, females) and gonadal status (early gonadectomized, gonadally intact) were placed in a cylindrical chamber (1...

Nepeta essential oil (Neo; catnip) and its major component, nepetalactone, have long been known to repel insects including mosquitoes. However, the neural mechanisms through which these repellents are detected by mosquitoes, including the yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti (L.), an important vector of Zika virus, were poorly understood. Here we show that Neo volatiles activate olfactory receptor neurons within the basiconic sensilla on the maxillary palps of female Ae. aegypti. A gustatory receptor neuron sensitive to the feeding deterrent quinine and housed within sensilla on the labella of females was activated by both Neo and nepetalactone...

BACKGROUND: Olfactory stimulation is an often overlooked method of environmental enrichment for cats in captivity. The best known example of olfactory enrichment is the use of catnip, a plant that can cause an apparently euphoric reaction in domestic cats and most of the Pantherinae. It has long been known that some domestic cats and most tigers do not respond to catnip. Although many anecdotes exist of other plants with similar effects, data are lacking about the number of cats that respond to these plants, and if cats that do not respond to catnip respond to any of them...

In many parts of the United States, mosquitoes were previously nuisance pests. However, they now represent a potential threat in the spread of viral diseases. The Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus, and Culex species mosquitoes are endemic to the United States and together may transmit a variety of viral diseases of growing concern, including West Nile virus, chikungunya, dengue fever, and Zika virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommend N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide (DEET) as a first-line mosquito repellent, but for patients refusing to use DEET or other conventional repellents, guidance is limited to any EPA-registered product...

This study aims to explore the effect of catnip Nepeta cataria (CNC) charcoal on the pharmacokinetics of the main alkaloids of Rhizoma Coptidis in vivo. Twenty-four rabbits were randomly divided into four groups and given oral administration of an aqueous extract of Rhizoma Coptidis (RCAE), RCAE plus CNC, RCAE plus activated carbon (AC), or distilled water, respectively. Plasma samples were collected after administration. The concentrations of berberine, coptisine, palmatine, and epiberberine in plasma were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)...

The High Throughput Screening System (HITSS) has been applied in insecticide behavioral response studies with various mosquito species. In general, chemical or natural compounds can produce a range of insect responses: contact irritancy, spatial repellency, knock-down, and toxicity. This study characterized these actions in essential oils derived from citronella, hairy basil, catnip, and vetiver in comparison to DEET and picaridin against Aedes aegypti and Anopheles minimus mosquito populations. Results indicated the two mosquito species exhibited significantly different (P<0...

The increase in insecticide resistant mosquito populations necessitates the exploration of novel vector control intervention measures. Push-pull strategies for insect control have been successful when used in integrated crop pest management. Through the combinatory use of deterring and attracting stimuli, the abundance of insect pests can be changed in a given area. A push-pull strategy might also significantly reduce human-vector contacts and augment existing mosquito control strategies, e.g. through the combination of an attractive trapping system and a potent spatial repellent...

Enanatiomerically pure 4aS,7S,7aR and 4aS,7S,7aS-nepetalactams and their analogs have been prepared in just two steps from 4aS,7S,7aR and 4aS,7S,7aS-nepetalactones, major components of catnip oil. Lactams or cyclic amides from iridoid monoterpenes are generated and being evaluated as a new class of compounds as arthropod deterrents against disease vectors.

BACKGROUND: Horn flies are among the most important biting fly pests of cattle in the United States. Horn fly management is largely dependent upon pesticides, which ultimately leads to the rapid development of insecticide resistance. Alternative control strategies, including repellents, have shown promising results in reducing fly biting. In the present study, we examined the efficacy and longevity of recently identified natural product repellents against horn flies. RESULTS: Catnip oil, geraniol and C8910 acids reduced horn fly feeding in a laboratory bioassay and also exhibited spatial repellency in the olfactometer...

The behavioral responses of colony populations of Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus, Culex quinquefasciatus, and Anopheles minimus to four essential oils (citronella, hairy basil, catnip, and vetiver), two standard repellents (DEET and picaridin), and two synthetic pyrethroids (deltamethrin and permethrin) were conducted in the laboratory using an excito-repellency test system. Results revealed that Cx. quinquefasciatus and An. minimus exhibited much stronger behavioral responses to all test compounds (65-98% escape for contact, 21...

BACKGROUND: Mosquitoes are the dominant vectors of pathogens that cause infectious diseases such as malaria, dengue, yellow fever and filariasis. Current vector control strategies often rely on the use of pyrethroids against which mosquitoes are increasingly developing resistance. Here, a push-pull system is presented, that operates by the simultaneous use of repellent and attractive volatile odorants. METHOD/RESULTS: Experiments were carried out in a semi-field set-up: a traditional house which was constructed inside a screenhouse...

Adults of a generalist herbivore, the lubber grasshopper,Romalea guttata, can be converted to functional specialists by feeding them exclusively on catnip,Nepeta cataria. No obvious adverse effects on adult development resulted from this enforced monophagy. Notwithstanding the fact thatR. guttata has had no coevolutionary relationship with this Eurasian mint, it readily sequesters compounds that are identical to or derived from the terpenoid lactones that are characteristic ofN. cataria. R. guttata appears to both biomagnify minor allelochemicals and to sequester metabolites of theNepeta terpenes in its paired defensive glands...

The stable fly, Stomoxys calcitrans (Diptera: Muscidae), is one of the most important pests of cattle and costs U.S. cattle producers billions of dollars in losses annually. In this study, the efficacy of catnip oil encapsulated in gelatin in oviposition deterrence and larval growth inhibition in stable flies was examined under laboratory conditions. More than 98% inhibition of stable fly larval growth and female oviposition was observed in larval and oviposition media treated with encapsulated catnip oil (0...

A field bioassay evaluating candidate chemicals as aerial repellents was developed and evaluated against natural mosquito populations in Beltsville, MD. The bioassay consisted of an attractive source surrounded by a grid of 16 septa containing a volatile candidate aerial repellent, compared with an attractive source without such a grid. The attractive source was a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention light trap supplemented with carbon dioxide. Significant sources of variation included weather, position, and the differential response of mosquito species...

A protocol has been developed for the indoor evaluation of candidate spatial repellents intended for use in push and pull systems. Single treatments (catnip oil, 1-methylpiperazine, and homopiperazine) and a mixture of catnip oil and homopiperazine were tested with yellow-fever mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti) in Y-tube olfactometers to determine 1) if these compounds inhibited mosquito host-seeking at short distances and 2) if results obtained in olfactometer tests can be correlated with a larger scale set-up, that is, a room test...